On this day, seven years ago, a young life was snuffed out in its prime; a rare and exceedingly beautiful bud, torn from the stem before it could truly blossom.

The victim was Inge Lotz; she was just 22 years old.

A Magnum cum Laude Honours Graduate in the fiercely competitive field of Actuarial Science, Inge was also a virtuoso pianist blessed with a sublime voice that would fill her church to the brim whenever she was invited to perform there.

Her brilliance, her spirit of independence, her indomitable appetite for hard work is almost certainly what got her killed. In the male-dominated, insular Afrikaner world in which she dwelled, Inge was simply too bright a star.

There is no doubt in my mind that she was murdered by someone she knew; a friend, someone she trusted, maybe even loved, and that person was a fellow student from the local University campus in Stellenbosch.

She died at home, in a brand new apartment in which she had lived for less than a month, and on a couch she had bought just a few days before.

In a world already plagued by the most unimaginable excesses of inhuman depravity, there can be few things more shameful, more innately foul and un-Christian than for a grown man to strike a young girl.

But the loathsome coward who took Inge’s life didn’t just stop with beating her skull to a pulp, because in spite of her horrific injuries, Inge refused to die. She was still breathing.

So he took out a knife and set to work on her throat.

And when he was done, and she lay still and quite dead, he attacked her heart with such ferocity that he severed two ribs in the process.

Even those professionals who have not studied the crime scene and autopsy imagery will know that the manner in which she was killed; the extreme use of violent force, the rage, the overkill and the post-mortem mutilation, all point to a personal-cause homicide committed by a former or existing intimate; a male almost certainly of similar age

There was no evidence of a break-in, nothing was disturbed or discovered to have been stolen. There were no signs of a struggle, nothing to indicate an aggressive escalation of violence preceding the actual murder itself. There was no sexual assault or signs of any deviant pre or post-mortem activity. The killer coldly positioned the body, cleaned himself and, in parts, the crime-scene and the murder weapons before taking them with him.

He arrived and departed unseen and simply disappeared into thin air.

And so here we are, seven years later embroiled in recriminations over the disgracefully incompetent and arguably corrupt South African Police investigation into her murder.

I have attempted to defend them in the past by suggesting that their failures are perhaps more to do with where the Nation is now, in its post-apartheid renaissance, than with malicious intent.

But as the weeks have dragged into months and then to years, I have come to realise that I have been hopelessly naïve. The simple fact of the matter is that there are those in authority who have no wish, no wish whatsoever to crack this case.

My research has shown that there were more than sufficient indicators, not only at the crime scene, but elsewhere, for any experienced homicide detective worth his badge to have nailed the killer within a matter of days.

It is a tragic indictment on South Africa that childish turf-wars and absurd notions of racial and political correctness got it the way of a thorough and meticulous combing of the crime scene right down to a disciplined door-to-door enquiry of the surrounding neighbourhood.

It was elementary blunders like these, exacerbated by further catastrophic errors of judgement that were made in the early hours and days following the discovery of Inge’s cruelly disfigured body, that was to define and subsequently frustrate this murder enquiry from the very outset.

And as the South African Keystone cops fought their petty internecine war, the trail of Inge’s killer became ever colder by the day.

The motive for her murder was a perceived irreconcilable personal cause, most probably hatred. Quite what fuelled that hatred remains unclear; jealousy is always an option, as is fear. Fear of exposure perhaps. There were other dynamics at play of course, but it is not necessary to go into detail here save to mention that in the immediate aftermath of the killing other people, especially those within Inge’s social group, quickly realised the identity of the man responsible.

That these people have remained silent for 7 years is quite remarkable in itself. And yet one must remember that they were mostly just students at the time; young, ambitious and on the threshold of promising careers, desperate to live up to the expectations of overbearing parents and frightened out of their collective wits that anything they may have said to the police might have been taken the wrong way.

Their communal silence betrayed Inge then as it still does today.

But time and a troubled conscience make uneasy bedfellows, especially as these young people slowly ascend the ladder of success, grow older, marry, settle down and have kids of their own.

Sooner or later there will come a point when these people can take no more. One day, when they can no longer bear to see their lying eyes staring back at them from the mirror each morning, they will step up and unburden their desperate souls, do the right thing and ultimately atone for the terrible secret they have kept hidden all these years

Meanwhile they should remember that today, as they have done on this day for the past seven years, Inge’s desolate parents will light a candle for their murdered child. They are good, honest, hard-working, immensely compassionate people – the sort of folk that were never equipped with the survival skills to cope with such tragic loss.

Theirs is a lonely, dark, empty existence, punctuated only occasionally by the hope that one day, maybe, the torture will end.

Marlene Malan, RapportCape Town – Exactly seven years after Matie student Inge Lotz, 22, was murdered, her father has offered a reward of R1m for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the murderer of his only child.

Lotz’s boyfriend, Fred van der Vyver, 29, was acquitted of her murder in a drawn-out court case in 2007.

Professor Jan Lotz said he had lost all faith in the police. “The time has come for me to do something about the case myself.”

“Out there is a psychopath who killed my child in the cruellest possible manner. For 10 months we sat in court listening how police messed up the investigation… Somewhere there has to be someone with a piece of information to complete the puzzle.”

“For this I’m willing to pay R1m.”

Lotz said there were many questions regarding the investigation and subsequent court case that bothered him.

“I’m looking for the towel, which the murderer used to wipe up Inge’s blood and clean the bathroom floor. Then I’m looking for the magazine left by the murderer on her lap and opened at an article about someone in her circle of friends.”

He said he was willing to pay for evidence to be sent to an American lab for forensic testing. He said police had told him that evidence had disappeared after being removed from a judge’s office.

Lotz said there was nothing left for him but to search for justice for his child. “Before I die, that is the least I can do for her. No amount of money is too much for this.”

“I will never have peace if I don’t know who committed this terrible crime.”

Lotz family flooded with calls after reward offeredMarch 20 2012 at 03:37pm By Zara Nicholson

Numerous calls have been received by the family of Inge Lotz – who was found murdered in her Stellenbosch flat seven years ago – since her father posted a R1 million reward for information.

And the author of the biography of the slain Stellenbosch university student says this move highlights the “inefficient and clumsy” investigative by police who bungled the case.

Seven years after her murder on March 16, 2005, her family has still not seen justice. Now her father, Professor Jan Lotz, is offering R1m for the killer’s conviction.

Lotz was 22 when she was found murdered in her Stellenbosch flat – she had been bludgeoned to death. Soon after her murder, her boyfriend, Fred van der Vyver, was arrested and later stood trial but was acquitted in November 2007.

During his trial, the police’s shoddy work dismantled the State’s case, with Judge Deon van Zyl rejecting all aspects of their case when setting Van der Vyver free.

Van der Vyver later successfully took the Minister of Police to court for malicious prosecution, but the State is appealing the ruling.

Attorney Johan Jordaan, who is the contact person for people with information, said that since the weekend they had received numerous calls and were following up on all leads. “Many people have addressed issues in the bigger picture of the case and there have been fractions of information from all over,” Jordaan said.

Meanwhile Michael Day, author of the Inge Lotz biography Inge – A life cruelly betrayed, says her father’s reward should be seen as a message that the case would not be swept away.

“Professor Lotz’s announcement of an unprecedented R1m reward for information leading to the capture of his daughter’s killer cannot be dismissed lightly as the final act of a desperate man crying out in the face of a paralysed criminal justice system that has clearly let him down,” Day said.

In the light of the latest appeal by the Lotz family, Day said it was necessary to remind the public about Van Zyl’s words when commenting on the Lotz enquiry: “Although I am reluctant to question the functioning of the police, it would appear that inefficient and clumsy investigative work took place in the early stages of this case.”

Day added that in a scathing 43-point police memo, written four weeks into the enquiry, the investigating officer was lambasted for failing to conduct even the most elementary of procedural enquiries. - Cape Times

South Africa’s most celebrated detective has answered a father’s cry for help and started the hunt for a murderer who has evaded justice for seven years.

This development came on Tuesday as legendary killer-hunter Piet Byleveld flew from Joburg to Cape Town and met Professor Jan Lotz, father of slain Matie Inge Lotz.

The brilliant student was bludgeoned to death at the age of 22 in her Stellenbosch flat on the afternoon of March 16, 2005.

Soon after the discovery of her body, her boyfriend, Fred Van der Vyver, emerged as the prime suspect.

But in a trial described by investigative author Anthony Altbeker as “one of the most sensational and controversial murder trials in SA legal history”, Judge Deon van Zyl rejected all aspects of the State’s case and acquitted Van der Vyver on November 29, 2007.

No one has since been tried or convicted of the murder.

Two weeks ago, Lotz told the Cape Argus: “I need peace, before I depart from this world. And that peace can only happen when I know. I am offering a personal reward of R1 million for any information which leads to the successful prosecution of a party or parties in connection with the murder of my daughter.”

As of Tuesday, his daughter’s killer or killers are being hunted by Byleveld, who retired from the SAPS at the end of June 2010. Byleveld now works for private security company CSS Tactical.

His CV on the company website records how “Byleveld solved many high profile cases, such as the Sheldean Human murder (2006), the Leigh Matthews abduction and murder (2004), Johannesburg mine dump serial killer (2003), the Hillbrow serial rapist (2003) and the Kranskop serial killer (1996)”.

“This dedicated and thorough Investigation Officer will leave no stone unturned to bring offenders to book. His efforts have been consistently rewarded by the SAPS and he has received numerous medals for combating terrorism, faithful service, long service and he is one of only seven police officers to date who have received the prestigious SAPS Commendation Medal.”

Asked if it was possible that evidence could still exist, Byleveld told the Cape Argus: “In any murder case, there is always the possibility of evidence you can use. If evidence exists, I will do my utmost best to find it.”

Byleveld works in partnership with Bushy Engelbrecht, another celebrated senior former policeman.

According to his CV, Engelbrecht has supervised numerous high profile investigations, including the politically motivated Shobashobane massacres in Port Shepstone and the Richmond (KZN) killings.

Lotz, speaking at his home in Welgemoed, told the Cape Argus: “I put a million rand on the table, and I needed probably the best I could find. In my mind, I could not have found a better man than Piet Byleveld.”

Lotz put up the money about 10 days ago for anyone who could help in catching his daughter’s killer.

Asked by the Cape Argus whether he had concerns about his or his wife’s personal safety by offering the massive reward, he told the Cape Argus recently: “So be it. Without this knowledge, my life is nothing. It’s not vengeance I am seeking, it’s not retribution.

“I can’t live without knowing. I just want the truth. Today, I am not living… I am just existing.”

Of Byleveld’s plan, he said on Tuesday: “Piet will be the leading investigator, backed up by teams in Johannesburg and Cape Town. I will be paying him as a normal client.

“I would like Mr Byleveld to provide me with the answer to ‘who killed Inge Lotz on March 16, 2005?’ “

Asked if he needed her killer to be jailed, he said: “No, I just want the answer.”

Lotz said he had been impressed when Byleveld told him he would be re-investigating the case from scratch.

“He said: ‘Always starts at the very beginning. Everything that is on the table will be looked at.’”

Asked whether he and his wife, Juanita, would find it difficult to endure the re-examination of all the evidence yet again, he said: “I think my wife finds it difficult, but she’s positive – as I am – that we are on the right track.”

Furthermore, Lotz said he was greatly encouraged by information relating to the case sent to his attorney in Bloemfontein since posting the R1m reward.

“The response has been beyond our expectation. A whole series of things, some very interesting information (had been submitted). We’re doing a sifting process and that information we believe important will be sent to Mr Byleveld,” Lotz said.

The Cape Argus approached Altbeker with the news, and he said: “Good luck to them. A lot of people have been trying.”

Altbeker said he believed the case was “stale”, by which he meant that any evidence could possibly not be usable in court. “But I hope it’s cracked,” he said of the case.

From acquittal to civil action – drama in court:

*March 16, 2005: Inge Lotz is bludgeoned to death in her Stellenbosch flat.

*May 21, 2009: Lotz’s parents drop the civil suit and the parties reach a settlement agreement not to sue one another or make any statements to the media.

*November 11, 2010: Van der Vyver’s civil suit against the minister starts in the Western Cape High Court.

*August 15, 2011: Van der Vyver wins the civil action.

*September 15, 2011: The high court refuses to grant the minister leave to appeal the decision in the civil action. The minister petitions the Supreme Court of Appeal.

*November 17, 2011: The Supreme Court of Appeal gives the minister the go-ahead to appeal the decision.

*March 16, 2012: Lotz’s parents post a R1million reward for info that leads to the prosecution of their daughter’s killer.

Byleveld’s successful cases:

*West End serial killer Jack Mogale who killed 16 people and was convicted of murder and rape in 2011. He committed the crimes inareas south of Joburg between March 2008 and March 2009.

*Seven-year-old Sheldean Human’s body was found in a stormwater drain in Pretoria 15 days after she vanished in February 2007. Her killer, Andrew Jordaan, 30, was arrested after confessing to Byleveld.

*Byleveld investigated the assassination of mining magnate Brett Kebble in 2005 and claimed he had proof that the self-confessed killers had put out a hit on him. Mikey Schultz and Nigel McGurk were given amnesty from prosecution after they turned state witness.

If Detective Byleveld is successful, and I have no doubt that he will be, two consequences may accrue:1. Prof. Lotz and his wife will be able to bring closure to their daughter's brutal murder.2. Fred van der Vyver will have additional leverage to clear his name and win recompensation for the millions of rand his family spent on his defense.

Things should move very quickly now.

The views presented in this post are those of the author only. They do not necessarily represent the views of DoD or any of its components.

Three weeks ago, Professor Jan Lotz offered a sizeable reward for information regarding the murder of his only child, Inge Lotz. He hired the most highly respected private investigator in all of South Africa to pursue the case.

For a week thereafter, numerous articles laced the news. Lately, nothing of any informative value.

Is anything going on down there? Can nothing be expected from Prof. Lotz's actions?

Can anyone offer some insight into what is going on?

Thanks,Pat

The views presented in this post are those of the author only. They do not necessarily represent the views of DoD or any of its components.

This is really interesting. I assume this is good news to all interested in getting to the answer of who was responsible for this murder. I also assume pottoman you are saying this because Piet Byleveld is now involved in the case? Yes, I'm sure the prospect of him being on your trail causes a bit of a stir in the stomach!

I've read some of your previous posts and in one of them you say that you know who did it. This was some time ago and I would like to know if you've changed your mind.

In some of the papers the father, Prof Jan Lotz, is quoted as saying that he is convinced that the murderer is one of the people who was at the funeral and carried her coffin. Do you share this belief?

Interested2 wrote:Semantics, African. I intended no harm. What difference does it make when I joined? When did you join this forum? Seems like you also joined a very long time after the discussion started?

I most certainly trust that you do not intend any harm. Now I joined this forum after Louis van der Vyver and Dup du Bruyn decided to, and contacted (contracted?) some of the people posting on the blogsouthafrica.net blog. I do not know how they (Dup and Louis) got the information (with contact detail and phone numbers) - but they did. Impressive - they (Dup and Louis) should be able to contribute significantly towards the current investigation headed up by Piet Byleveld, and at this stage there should already be a close working relationship established.

I joined last Monday after dinner. I'm not sure that I follow the points (or insinuation) you're making about the other blog, so could we get back to some of the other issues under discussion here?

I would really still like to hear from "pottoman" on my questions above. Pottoman, do you still believe you know who is responsible for this murder? Also, do you share Prof Lotz's belief that the murderer is one of the people at the funeral and carried the coffin?

Please correct me if I've misunderstood the newspaper report or if it was inaccurate.

Interested2 wrote:I've read some of your previous posts and in one of them you say that you know who did it. This was some time ago and I would like to know if you've changed your mind.

Not for a second. But knowing something and being able to prove it beyond reasonable doubt are two entirely different things. Inge's killer believes he is very, very smart and the reason he has gotten away with murder so far is because he has never been outmatched. In my boxing days I had the same blind self belief, until, that is, someone smacked me on my arse within seconds of the bout.

Moral being: There is always someone smarter, always someone faster with their hands - the trick is in being able to stay well clear of them.

In some of the papers the father, Prof Jan Lotz, is quoted as saying that he is convinced that the murderer is one of the people who was at the funeral and carried her coffin. Do you share this belief?

Inge's killer was at her funeral right enough.

PS. I hear toilet paper sales have been rocketing in Lagos of late......

I have just finished the book about the career of the recently retired homicide investigator working with Prof. & Mrs. Lotz to identify Inge's killer. Det. Piet Byleveld is unlike any investigator I have worked with during my police career in several agencies across several states. The book presents his success rate as 99% of cases he investigated culminating with convictions. Det. Byleveld will not tip his cards nor give any hint of the progress of his investigation until he has every tiny detail worked out and documented.

Having read the book BYLEVELD -- Dossier of a Serial Sleuth by Hanlie Retief, I am convinced the real killer will be identified by Det. Byleveld has put every last piece of the puzzle in place.

I am fully confident he will succeed.

The views presented in this post are those of the author only. They do not necessarily represent the views of DoD or any of its components.